Camping in Fish Creek, Wis. last week with limited access to Wi-Fi and inconsistent cell coverage, I was almost completely cut off from the rumors swirling around the draft. I knew the Bucks worked out Leuer, but that was the extent of my knowledge.

As a University of Wisconsin-Madison alumnus, I was on the fence about Leuer as a Buck going into the draft. I was a sophomore when he was just a skinny freshman with a disproportionately small head. I remember sitting in U.S. history during the first week of classes and predicting the stick figure that just sat down behind me would not have much of a career as a Badger.

While he remains thin and his head is still too small for his body, Leuer certainly proved me wrong.

After getting limited minutes as a freshman, Leuer made significant contributions as a sophomore before becoming a key player his last two years at Wisconsin.

It did not take Leuer long to show me I was significantly undervaluing him. The first sign my prediction would be incorrect arrived in the first game of the 2007-08 Big Ten season. I remember watching Leuer go 5-for-5 from behind the arc against Michigan and immediately thinking the Badgers could have another Mike Wilkinson on their hands.

For you Bucks fans who do not follow the Badgers, Wilkinson was a 6-foot-8-inch former Wisconsin Mr. Basketball who had a solid four-year career in Madison after redshirting as a freshman. He provided a nice complement to Devin Harris and could play both inside the paint and beyond the 3-pt line.

As I watched Leuer explode at Michigan, I looked at him as a player who, like Wilkinson, would be a nice complement to a star guard like Harris. After showing steady improvement as a sophomore, Leuer went on to exceed my expectations as a junior.

To me, Leuer became the best player on the Badgers in his third year. He would often set up beyond the arc and use his quickness to take bigger players off the dribble. Leuer did miss a good chunk of the Big Ten season that year with a wrist injury, but he returned and put up nice numbers in postseason play.

With the departures of Trevon Hughes and Jason Bohannon, it appeared Leuer was poised to be the unquestioned leader of the 2010-11 Wisconsin Badgers. While Jordan Taylor emerged and stole some of his thunder, Leuer still had a successful senior year. Like Wilkinson and Harris, Taylor and Leuer formed a lethal combination and carried the Badgers in most games.

Watching Leuer for four years, I had little doubt he could play in the NBA. After all, bigger guys with 3-pt range seem to find a role in the league despite other shortcomings…Brian Scalabrine anyone? Despite that, I had a hard time understanding how Leuer would be able to guard professional power forwards.

As my initial excitement over the Bucks landing a Badger dissipated, those same questions once again lingered. At only 220 pounds, I cannot see Leuer standing much of a chance against any power forward with a back to the basket game.

While I will cheer for him relentlessly, Leuer looks like a situational, end of the bench guy to me. Just remember, he proved me wrong once before. As a Bucks fan, I hope he can do it again.

Josh Hilgendorf is a contributor to the Milwaukee Bucks blog Bucksketball.com. Follow him on Twitter. Become a fan on Facebook (right sidebar).

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Enemy: Nets Are Scorching

Point Guard
Keyon Dooling vs. Devin Harris

There’s a lot of positive talk about Brandon Jennings returning to play the Nets Saturday night, but it seems that he’ll be coming off the bench in his first game back from injury.  Coach Skiles told Charles F. Gardner he only expected Jennings to play limited minutes in his return.  Any minutes Jennings is given will more likely cut into the playing time of Earl Boykins rather than Dooling.  Dooling and Boykins have both had their moments in Jennings’s absence, but Dooling has been a much more steady defender.  Boykins scoring outbursts have always been enjoyable, but his penchant for over-dribbling and limited impact defensively cannot be overlooked.  Against the famously quick Harris, Dooling is a better matchup.

Advantage: Nets

Shooting Guard
Chris Douglas-Roberts vs. Stephen Graham

Even though three other Bucks scored 20+ points against the Raptors Friday night, it was actually CD-R that led the team in plus/minus.  That’s a stat that’s hard to put too much stock in for one game, but it did illustrate that CD-R did a couple more things than he usually does against the Raptors.  Known primarily as a scorer for good reason, CD-R grabbed four rebounds and handed out three assists in his 24 Toronto minutes Friday.  Those are still fairly pedestrian numbers, but a marked improvement for a guy who was averaging less than two assists and three rebounds in his five previous starts for the injured John Salmons. Salmons may be back soon, and with the glut of wings Milwaukee’s now sporting, CD-R could be in line for a significant playing time cut when is he.  He must continue to make the most of his minutes now.

Advantage: Bucks

Small Forward
Corey Maggette vs. Travis Outlaw

Now would be a great time for me to officially retire my, “When Corey Maggette Scores 20 Points, the Bucks Will Lose By Double Digits” theory.  It was fun while it lasted.  But this is more fun.  Maggette’s finished with 20 points seven times this month and Milwaukee is 5-2 in those games.  His scoring has been a constant lately.  His teammates haven’t all come around, but Maggette sure has.  This is the player the Bucks traded for.  This is the guy who inspired a lot of confidence in Milwaukee’s efforts to be improved this season.  It would have been great had he been here all season, but in this case, late is once again, better than never.  Maggette’s coming off a big game against the Raptors.  He logged his first double double of the season by scoring a season high 29 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.

Advantage: Bucks

Power Forward
Ersan Ilyasova vs. Derrick Favors

Ilyasova couldn’t miss against the Raptors.  That’s kind of what the Raptors encourage though.  Not that the Nets are much better.  Favors may have trouble sticking with Ilyasova outside, which should result in a few open looks for the Bucks forward.  But he hasn’t always been great about knocking those down this season.  Yes, he made nine of 10 shots in Toronto (including both his three-point attempts), but that doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be able to do it again Saturday night.  That, in a nutshell, has been the issue with Ilyasova this season.

Advantage: Bucks

Center
Andrew Bogut vs. Brook Lopez

One rebound.  28 points and one rebound.  That was Lopez’s game yesterday.  If his intensity on the glass is similar at all against the Bucks, we may need to brace ourselves for a 30+ rebounding night from Andrew Bogut.  It’s been an interesting year from Lopez.  His scoring is up a little bit over last season, but for some reason, he went from average rebounder to completely miserable one.  His rebounding rate is that of Corey Maggette’s, despite the fact that he plays near the hoop and is, you know, a 7-foot center.  Bogut’s coming off a strong game offensively against the Raptors, but I’m sure he’s taking his share of the blame for a rather anemic effort defensively from the Bucks as a unit.  He’s their unquestioned leader at that end of the court and should have them ready to go against the Nets.

Advantage: Bucks

Bench
Carlos Delfino, Brandon Jennings, Luc Mbah a Moute, Earl Boykins and Larry Sanders

vs.

Anthony Morrow, Sasha Vujacic, Kris Humphries, Quinton Ross, Johan Petro and Ben Uzoh

Anthony Morrow is a very accurate shooter and effective scorer.  Kris Humphries is a big guy, a strong finisher and solid rebounder.  Everyone else on the Nets bench?  Bleh.  If Delfino is back to form after a rough night in Toronto and Jennings is even a third of himself in ten minutes of playing time or so, Milwaukee could have a sizable advantage in this area against New Jersey.

Advantage: Bucks

Prediction: Bucks 106 – Nets 87

New Jersey isn’t very good.  The Bucks have been good about beating the worst teams in the league pretty consistently lately.  All indications are that the Bucks should win.  But how they win is what will be important.  Scott Skiles is desperately searching for an efficient deconstructing of a weak opponent, complete with surgical offensive precision and suffocating defense.  He doesn’t want his starters to need to play much in the fourth quarter.  He wants a complete effort.  Whether he’ll get that is up in the air.

Jeremy Schmidt writes the Milwaukee Bucks blog Bucksketball.com.  Follow him on Twitter.  Then become a fan on Facebook (in the sidebar).

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One of the many keys to continued success the rest of the way for the Milwaukee Bucks was prominently on display Wednesday night at the Bradley Center.  They need balance.  A team that lacks a true star to begin with, the Bucks have needed to get something out of everyone all year, even before Andrew Bogut’s injury.  Now, they need balance more than ever.  And when they get it, good things can happen.  Milwaukee was about as balanced as they could be in their 108-89 victory over the Nets Wednesday night – 120 minutes for the starters, 120 minutes for the reserves.

While the Bucks starters were outscored 64-59 on the night, the bench did their part and then some, out-scoring New Jersey’s backups 49-25.  This shouldn’t have been surprising though.  The Nets are 11-67 for a reason.  They have some starters that are above-average players, but their bench is full of young, inexperienced and, as far as I could tell, relatively uninterested players.  New Jersey certainly looked the part of the league’s bottom feeder.  Everyone was hooting and hollering from the sidelines during a fast start by Devin Harris, but there was a clear sense of indifference as the game began to slip away.  But hey, a job is a job, and if I had a stat at my work that said we’d only had a successful day 11 out of the last 77 times we operated, I’d be waiting for a vacation myself.  But back to the bench.

Role player was a fitting definition of the Bucks reserves on this evening.

Jerry Stackhouse as “Low Post Scorer”

Upon signing Stackhouse earlier this season, Coach Skiles said he thought the veteran immediately became Milwaukee’s second best low post scorer.   Occasionally the Bucks had been going to him in the post, but with the other options the Bucks had, Bogut in the paint and Salmons everywhere, Stack’s post game had been a bit forgotten about.  Wednesday night it was front and center.  Time after time Milwaukee found Stackhouse in the post with a smaller (and often much younger) defender on him that he was able to take advantage of.  Stack finished with a much needed 18 points (6-9 FG 2-2 3FG 4-4 FT) after really struggling the last couple weeks.

“You get a couple drops here and there.  I feel like I got an advantage over whoever guarding me,” Stackhouse said with a wry smile.  “Guys know their role, they know what they do best, I think that’s what we have to do now.  We have to do what we do and don’t try and do more than that and we’ll be fine.”

Dan Gadzuric as “Awkward Hustling Big Man”

Gadz was the big goofy jumper we all remembered from years ago once again Wednesday night.  He can make you smile (eight rebounds in 17 minutes), he can make you cringe (a free throw line jumper … that went down smooth) and he can make you cry (never one to be outdone, he pulled a Brezec and fell down after a move by a Nets guard).  Gadz was out there running around and doing his best to play to his strengths, namely rebounding and shot-blocking.  He’s not getting to as many balls as he once did as a shot-blocker, but Gadz can certainly still grab some boards.

Charlie Bell as “The X Stopper”

While Bell is probably not as good a defender as his reputation suggests he is, he had another strong defensive outing against the Nets.  Devin Harris gave Milwaukee fits in the first quarter, scoring 18 of his 25 points, but Bell proved very effective on him when given the chance.

Bell played the entire second quarter, helping to limit Harris to just one point on zero shots from the field.  With Harris unaggressive, the Nets mustered little offense and were unable to build on the momentum of their big first quarter.  I joked that Bell probably hadn’t been playing much lately because he was busy traveling the country and stopping Dwyane Wade from doing things given the talk about him being the “Wade Stopper” earlier this year.  But Bell certainly played the role of top defender against the Nets.

Kurt Thomas as “A Different Kind of Center”

About the only thing Thomas does similar to Bogut is rebound.  Thomas again rebounded the ball very well Wednesday, grabbing 10 rebounds in 27 minutes.  In addition to his skills on the glass, Thomas showed he’s not going to hurt the Bucks offense.  His 15-foot jumper looks as reliable as ever and is helping to create space for the Bucks inside.

The Bucks veteran role players have traveled this path before and know what adversity is like.  Thus far, they’ve been shining examples on how the Bucks can keep the good times rolling without Andrew Bogut.

Offense

• John Salmons had 22 points (10-13 FG 1-2 3FG 1-2 FT).  This feels redundant.  In a good way.  Not like when I used to think to myself, “why can’t Tim Thomas ever grab more than five rebounds or score more than 15 points?”  That was the bad kind of redundant.

• He had a few points in garbage time to help pad the numbers, but Ersan Ilyasova’s points were on jumpers so smooth looking I wanted to grab them and put them in a commercial for milk chocolate.  15 points (7-12 FG 1-4 3FG 0-1 FT) and nine rebounds on the evening.  The consistently stellar production out of Ilyasova lately has been a total joy to watch.  It’s one thing to like having a player on a team, it’s another to have a player who is so much fun to watch on a team.  Ersan is the latter.

Defense

Bell, Thomas, Gadzuric and Stackhouse, the role players, all did their part defensively.  Stack had a breakaway dunk off a steal and that exceptional block you saw the highlight of above.  The Nets got into Milwaukee right off the bat, shooting 65% in the first quarter.  Obviously that wasn’t going to last and the Bucks made sure of it by holding them to 27% shooting in the second half.  Their point totals were 38 in the first quarter to only 31 in the second half.  Quite a difference a break makes.

Final Thoughts

I’d like to think it’s never easy for an NBA team and knowing the Nets are hungry for any wins they can get would make for a competitive game.  But I never felt like the Bucks would drop this one.  Even when the Nets were playing well, it seemed more luck than skill, save for Devin Harris.  What was surprising is how ineffective Brook Lopez was.  The Nets center has given Milwaukee fits in the past and with Bogut out, I thought he’d be the key to their whole game.  Perhaps he was too willing to defer (seven assists to just six shots).  Whatever the case may be, Lopez was hardly noticeable with just five points on 1-6 shooting.  I can live with that and I can certainly live with another Bucks win.  They’ll need all of them they can get to hold off Charlotte and stay in the top six.

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The thought of the Nets once again sans D-Ha sounds good to me.  Good enough that I’d expect it to be just the medicine the Bucks need after a very disappointing home loss against Detroit on Tuesday night.

• Chris Douglas-Roberts, he of the 31 and 10 line in Milwaukee earlier this year, after last night’s game from ESPN.com:

“You get surprised a lot in the league. It is what it is,” Douglas-Roberts said. “Things don’t work out all the time. I guess I’m out of the rotation.”

Douglas-Roberts doesn’t plan on discussing the situation with Vandeweghe.

“Absolutely not. I don’t think talks really do anything,” he said. “I’ve probably had the most talks with him on the team. But they don’t do nothing.”

So, no D-Ha, probably no CD-R and an organization recently thrust even further into turmoil?  I like the Bucks odds a lot.  I’m saying 104-95 Milwaukee.  Check out previews at BrewHoop and Nets Are Scorching

Other Notes

• Hakim Warrick in three words: shy, dunk, Playstation.  Jodie Meeks in three words: rookie, cliche, Kentucky.  Aron Phillips at Dime has the goods on them both.
  

• The Cavs don’t want to part with J.J. Hickson and that may leave the Pacers to pursue other options with Troy Murphy. Could the Bucks be an option?  Word is they are in talks.  I’m not sure how serious it is right now, but things could heat up before next Thursday’s trade deadline.  From Brian Winhorst at the Cleveland Plain-Dealer:

The Pacers, a source said, are also in talks with the Milwaukee Bucks and Sacramento Kings involving Murphy and both teams can offer expiring contracts.

• Andrew Bogut is approaching some milestones as an Australian.  More on this in the coming weeks.

• Tom Enlund has an update on Joe Alexander’s D-League progress.

• Paul Swaney of StadiumJourney.com recently visited the Bradley Center and made a poor food decision.

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(Probable) Inactives: Joe Alexander and Dan Gadzuric

at

New Jersey Nets (Kiki Vanderwegh) 3-30

(Probable) Inactives: Eduardo Najera, Tony Battie and Sean Williams

Date: 1/5/2010

Time: 6:00 (CST)

TV: Nah, not today

Match-Ups

Point Guard

Brandon Jennings vs. Devin Harris

Like most of these match-ups, this one won’t be quite as easy as the last time these teams met.  In the first game it was Rafer Alston manning the point for the 0-12 Nets.  Jennings burned Alston for 19 points, eight assists and his lone dunk of the season.  That was a different Nets team led by a different man though.  While Devin Harris hasn’t exactly righted the ship since his return from an early season ankle injury, he (along with the many other Nets who have returned from injuries since they last met the Bucks) at least helps make the Nets a competitive team.  Harris has not matched the lofty standard he set for himself last year though.  Shooting under 40 percent and averaging less than 20 points and dishing out fewer assists was probably not what Harris had in mind as a follow up to his all-star season last year.  If Harris can begin to get himself on track, the Nets become more than a team desperate for all the wins they can get.  Physically, Harris is still quick and strong and will be a load for Jennings on both sides of the court.

Advantage: Nets

Shooting Guard

Michael Redd vs. Courtney Lee

Can Michael Redd string together two stellar performances in a row?  Consistency has not been common this season for the Bucks, whether it’s been the ups and downs for the rookie point guard Jennings or the life of a finesse big man in Andrew Bogut, the Bucks key players have had problems performing night in and night out.  We’ve seen Redd be able to bring consistent scoring before, but whether or not that can still be apart of his game remains to be seen.  Courtney Lee is a solid defender, but not a  player for Redd to lose sleep over.  Redd should be able to use his crafty moves to get a few good looks at the rim and hopefully some free-throws.  However he’s going to do it, now is a great opportunity for Redd to get going.  After a strong game against Oklahoma City, Redd has games against New Jersey and Chicago, two weaker teams,  as opportunities to boost his confidence and find his rhythm before a long road trip out west.

Advantage: Bucks

Luc Richard Mbah a Moute vs. Chris Douglas-Roberts

CDR got loose for 31 points in the last Bucks-Nets game, doing most of his damage at the free-throw line (12-14).  Don’t hold your breath on him having that kind of impact again, as LRMAM was absent that game.  Do expect CDR to make some trips to the free throw line and do his best to keep getting to the rim.  CDR attacked the rim repeatedly in that game and has been doing that all year long, averaging roughly seven attempts at the rim per game … or more than anyone on the Bucks.  LRMAM is still figuring out this whole offense thing and might get a few post looks against the smaller CDR.

Advantage: Bucks (LRMAM fits so well!)

Power Forward

Ersan Ilyasova vs. Yi Jianlian

One of the great fears many Bucks fans have is that Easy Yi will one day go on to live up to the vast potential he has, scarring us for life and making us forever rue the day he was given up for what practically amounted to one season of Richard Jefferson. In his last five games, Yi has averaged 20 points and seven rebounds while shooting just a shade under 50 percent.  When he was drafted it was expected those types of performances would be common place for Yi, but he did so little in his one year with Milwaukee that he hardly seemed a better prospect than Charlie Villanueva.  Regardless, he’s looked good lately and that has everyone on watch in Milwaukee, even if it probably wouldn’t have happened here.

Advantage: Nets

Center

Andrew Bogut vs. Brook Lopez

Bogut had the upper hand earlier this year, with 21/11 to Lopez’s 11/4, but that could change with ease in this one.  Lopez has a much better supporting cast around him now and Bogut has yet to show much real consistency this year.  Bogut is coming off a very strong game against the Thunder after a string of four straight mediocre to bad games.  Lopez is one of the league’s best shot-blockers and could give Bogut some problems.  It’ll be important for Milwaukee to stick with the Aussie all night and try and ride him in this one.  Redd and Jennings haven’t been very good on the road and the path to road victories is typically lined with Andrew Bogut touches down low.

Advantage: Milwaukee

Bench

Charlie Bell, Kurt Thomas, Hakim Warrick and Luke Ridnour

vs.

Keyon Dooling, Trenton Hassell, Josh Boone and Terrance Williams

Not a stellar group for the Nets.  Dooling has been known to get hot, Hassell and Boone provide defense in theory if not in practice and since Vanderwegh has taken over, Williams minutes have been as erratic as his personality.  Not the way to get success out of rookies.  Ridnour was crucial for the Bucks against the Thunder and Hakim Warrick actually earned himself some crunch time minutes with his activity around the hoop.  Now if only he was a little better about scoring when he’s by the rim: 57 percent shooting at the rim on the year is a career low.

Advantage: Milwaukee

Prediction: Bucks 98 – Nets 88

I was all set to predict the Bucks would lose this game.  Even had the score: 94-91 Nets.  But the more I thought about it, the more confidence I had in Scott Skiles and the Bucks.  They haven’t really lost many games to teams they’ve been better than.  The Bucks have typically played at or above their talent level all season long and I don’t see why that would change now.  The rough December was largely the product of a more difficult schedule.  To this point, the Bucks have beat all the teams you’d expect them to beat (save for Sacramento) and I don’t see why that would change now.

Milwaukee looked much better defensively for parts of the Charlotte and Orlando game and for all of the Oklahoma City game.  If they were able to put it together for pieces of two of those and a full game in one of those, I don’t see why they shouldn’t be able to against an inferior New Jersey team.  Sure, the Nets are much better than they were in November and have some more talent now, but the Bucks remain the more talented squad and that has generally led to wins for Milwaukee this year.

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